Air shotgun



May 19, 1942. P. F. VINCENT AIR SHOTGUN 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 10,1939 &

ATTORNEYS May 19, 1942. P. F. VINCENT AIR SHOTGUN Filed Aug. 10, 1939 5Sheets-Sheet 2 R./ 5. m m m WM m M m .m M w Q N E Q, 4 \/S P IL 6 x. Q QQ Q Q RN Q ww Q 53332 a v w i rs Q w N Q v N Q 3 3 3 Q Q msw PatentedMay 19, 1942 cries AIR SHOTGUN Perry Franklin Vincent, Hillsdale, Mich.

Application August 10, 1939, Serial No. 289,419 Claims. -(01. 124-13)This invention relates "to improvements in air shot guns.

This invention relates to air guns and particularly to air guns such asshot guns having a large bore and an air reservoir for holding air underpressure for firing the gun.

In such guns, it is necessary to employ a hammer or equivalent mechanismfor releasing the air pressure and this mechanism must be such that thegun can be cocked-manually. Heretofore it has been impossible with suchguns to employ high pressures capable of producing muzzle velocitiessubstantially the same as those of powder fired guns because the hammermechanism has not been able, working against high pressures, either toopen the valve or to open the valve wide enough to release sufficientair from the reservoir for firing the gun. This has been particularlytrue in practical guns 'where manual cocking is required.

I have found that it is possible to produce a practical air gun capableof utilizing extremely high pressures and capable of producing muzzlevelocities substantially the same as those obtained in powder fired gunsby employing a new and improved hammer mechanism capable of releasingextremely high pressure instantaneously and of releasing suflicient airto fire the gun while employing a spring for the hammer which is not toostrong to permit manual cocking.

I make use of a very heavy hammer which is propelled by a compressionspring which is not so strong that the gun cannot be cocked manually butwhich is sufiiciently strong to propel the heavy hammer against, thevalve of theair reservoir to create a suflicient force toinstantaneously open the valve against high pressures. The strikingforce is greatly increased by the use of the heavy hammer which isarranged to carry through, opening the're'lease valve its full width toinstantaneously release suflicient air against the charge to give thedesired velocity.

With such an arrangement,.it is possible to conserve a portion of thecompressed air in the reservoir so that it is not necessary to pump upthe air in the reservoir after every shot. One is .air gun; in which bysimple adjustment of the hammer mechanism it is possible to obtain awide range of muzzle velocities. The hammer mechanism is adjustabletoward or away from the release valve so that even when the air pressurein the reservoir is at its highest point, it is possible to select thedesired muzzle velocity by moving the hammer mechanism toward or awayfrom the valve.

The objects of this invention are:

First, to produce a new and improved air gun. Second, to produce such anair gun in which extremely high pressures may be employed but in whichthe hammer operating spring need not be so strong that the gun cannot becocked manually.

Third, to produce such an air gun in which the inertia or momentum of aheavy hammer propelled by a spring capable of manual compression forcooking is utilized to release the air in an air reservoir, even thoughextremely high pressures are involved.

Fourth, to produce such a gun of simple construction which may be madeeconomically.

Fifth, to produce such a gun suitable for field 'or indoor target use. i

Sixth, to produce such a gun in which with a simple adjustment it ispossible to vary muzzle velocities.

Seventh, to produce such a gun which will not mis-fire when extremelyhigh pressures are employed and which will release suflicient air forfiring the charge at all reasonable pressures.

' Eighth, to produce such a gun suitable for use with scatter loads andin'whi ch the scatter loads .are fired without leakage to produceeffective velocities.

Ninth, to provide such a gun with an air reservoir of a size to holdsufiicient air for several shots, making it unnecessary to replenish theair supply after every shot.

Tenth, to produce such a gun suitable for use in shooting galleries andwhich may be connected to an air tank or other source of air pressure.

Other objects and advantages pertaining to details and economies ofconstruction and operation will appear from the description to follow.Preferred embodiments of my invention are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a side elevation of a gun embodying my invention. Y

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the gun barrel and air reservoir assembly.

Fig. .3 isv a side elevation of the hammer assembly.

tion.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a portion of the air pump.

Fig. 5 is an elevational view plunger.

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view through the working mechanism of thegun showing the relationship or the parts, showing the hammer in cockedposition and the gun open to receives shell.

Fig. 7 is a top view 01 the action of the gun.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a shot shell suitable for use in thegun.

Fig. 9 is a detail sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 11, showingthe bolt of the gun closed.

Fig. 10 is a detail sectional view taken on the line I -l0 of Fig. 11. 1

Fig. 11 is a detail sectional view similar to Fig. 6 but showing thehammer in firing posiof the air pump Fig. 12 is a detail sectional viewshowing a modification of the invention with the gun connected to asuitable source or air supply for shooting galleries or the like.

My new and improved gun consists of a wood I3 which is provided at itsend with a valve ll screw threaded into the pump chamber at l2, as shownin Fig. 6. The valve assembly consists of a valve seat l3 and a springactuated valve l4 which is preferably simply a tire valve. The

pump assembly I0 is provided with a knurled nut l to engage screwthreads ii on the end of the air reservoir 3.

Within the pump assembly I0 is inserted the plunger H which is providedwith a suitable cup l3. The plunger slides in a removable sleeve [3 andis held in position at the pump by a suitable bayonet Joint 23. On thesleeve I3 is a spring catch 2| which engages the detent 22 on the pumpassembly 13. It will be apparent that the voir and may be easilyserviced.

Within the air reservoir 3, I provide a suitable poppet valve 23 whichis provided with a portion 24 of resilient material such as syntheticrubber which engages the valve seat 25 to close the air reservoir. Thevalve 23 is provided with a stem 23 which extends axially of the port 3and through the aperture 21. The stem is provided with a cross pin 28which is engaged by a spring 29 which serves to seat the valve 23 SOthat when it-is desired to fill the reservoir 3 with air by pumping, thevalve 23 will be on its seat. The spring is of light weight since theair pressure in the air reservoir 3 holds the valve 23 on its seat assoon as the pressure is created in the reservoir 3. The rear end 30 ofthe air reservoir is tapered to receive a tapered sleeve 3| on thehammer assembly which is fastened to the rear end 30 of the airreservoir by means of screw 32.

Extending rearwardly from the sleeve 3| is a supporting bar 33 on whichthe sleeve 34 is mounted by means of brackets 35. The sleeve may bemoved along the bar 33 and is held in adjusted position by means ofbolts 33 which extend through slots 31 in the bar 33 which permitadJustment oi the sleeve along the bar. The hammer 33 which is in theform of a plunger, slides in the sleeve 34 which is flanged at 33 toform a stop for the hammer and is provided with a cap 43 at the otherend to form a stop for firing spring 4| which surrounds the stem 42 ofthe hammer and bears against the shoulder 43 on the hammer.

The hammer is arranged to move along the line of the axis of the valvestem 23 and is positioned in released position to strike the end of thevalve stem 23 to open the valve and to remain in contact with the stemwhen the valve i ope 4 The gun is a bolt action gun provided at the endof the barrel with a sleeve 44 in which the bolt 43 or breech blockslides. The top of the sleeve is open at 43 to receive the shell I whichis moved forward; into the chamber by a movement of the bolt 45 which isprovided with a handle 41 which, as the shell I is forced into thechamber 3, is moved into a slot 43 as is customary to lock the bolt forflring.

At the end of the stem 42 of the hammer, I provide a plate 43 whichserves a dual purpose. When it is desired to cock the gun, the handle 41is moved to the upright position as indicated in Fig. 6 and is pulledbackwardLv sliding in the slot 50 in sleeve 44. when the bolt is in thisposition, the lug 5| engages the plate 43 and pulls thehammer to theleft as viewed in Fig. 6. The plate 43 when the hammer has been pulledto cocking position engages the catch 32 on lever 53 which is pivoted onthe pin 54 of the hammer assembly and is urged upwardly by compressionspring 53. It will be seen that when the hammer is moved to the cockedposition, the catch 32 which slides in slot 56 in the plate 43 engagesthe plate to hold the hammer in cocked position from which it can bereleased by trigger 51 which is suitably connected to the catch 33 forreleas ing the catch 32.

Below the bolt and to conceal the hammer assembly, I provide a plate 33which is slotted as at 33 to permit movement or the lug 3| and the upperend of the plate 43 on operation of the bolt. It will be apparent thatafter the gun has been cocked and the bolt is shoved forward to forcethe shell I into the chamber 3, the lug 5| moves through the slot onforward movement of the bolt and upon turning of the bolt a quarter turnto lock it, the lug 3! moves through the portion 3| of the slot in theplate 33.

The barrel assembly which carries. the air reservoir 3 and the hammerassembly 4 and the pump assembly I3 flt into the stock I and the wholeunit is held in place by means of a screw 32.

The shell I is a shot shell which fits tightly in the chamber 3. The end33 is closed while the end 64 is open. A wad 63 spaced from-the closedend serves to confine scatter shot 36 which is also confined by thefront wad 61. A lateral port in the shell i registers with the port 3when the shell is in position for firing in the chamber 3. In order toassure proper register between the passage 3 and the port 33 which opensbetween the wad 63 and the closed end 63 of the shell, I provide aneccentrically disposed extending flange 33 which makes it impossible toinsert the shell in the gun any way except with the extending flange 33pointing upwardly, because the opening 43 in the sleeve 44 and theshapeoi the sleeve are such that the eccentric flange 68 will not fit withinthe sleeve 44 but must extend upwardly as shown in Fig. 6. By employingthe shell with the closed end 83 and the lateral port, I insure againstair leakage and make sure that the full force of the air is exerted inpropelling the shot load from the gun when the gun is fired and I do nothave the dimculty of leakage since it is easy to make the shell 1 fittightly in the chamber and it is easy to seal the open rear end of thebarrel by having the flange Ill butt against the opening where it isheld b the bolt which is locked firmly in position by movement of thehandle 41 in the slot 48 which has an inclined portion H which serves asa cam to force the bolt tightly home.

In the operation of my gun, I use extremely high pressures running up to700 pounds per square inch in the air reservoir 3. In order to releasethis pressure to fire the gun, I have to use a relatively heavy hammerbecause it is not possible to use a spring 4| strong enough to open thevalve without making it impossible to manually cock the gun. I have tomake use of the momentum of the relatively heavy hammer and thus obtainthe release of the air pressure by the opening of the valve 23 on impactof the hammer 38 against the end of the valve stem 26.

In my gun, I employ a hammer weighing four ounces and a spring whichexerts a force of 90 pounds when cocked and pounds when uncocked. Thehammer travels about one inch and in this length of travel, the springcreates enough kinetic energy of motion or momentum in the hammer toopen the valve 23 instantaneously so that the full force of the airpressure is exerted in firing the gun which will create muzzlevelocities the same as in a powder fired arm.

In the preferred form of the gun, the valve weighs approximately .65ounce. The head of the valve is .605 inch in diameter and the stem is.21 inch in diameter. The port 8 is .39 inch and the passage 9 is .31inch in diameter. These dimensions may, of course, vary somewhat.

When the gun is pumped up to full pressure of 700 pounds per squareinch, or even at lower pressures, the spring 4| is not capable ofholding the valve open against the pressure in the air reservoir 3. Theforce of the spring and the momentum of the hammer, however, as it movesfrom cocked to uncooked position to strike the valve stem is sufiicientto instantaneously open the valve 23 to fire the gun.

I may vary the position of the sleeve 34 along the bar 33, so that it ispossible to vary the muzzle velocity of the gun. By moving .the sleeve34 to the right as viewed in Fig. 6, it is possible to open the valve 23to an extent such that practically all of the pressure in the reservoir3 is released. By moving the sleeve 34 to the left, it is possible to socontrol the operation of the gun that the hammer upon striking the stem26 will open the valve 23 sufllciently to release a portion only of theair inthe reservoir 3 before the necessity of pumping the gun for eachfew shots and making it possible to employ the gun in shooting galleriesat-a great saving of cost to the proprietor of the gallery whoeliminates the necessity for supplying powder loaded cartridges.

The terms and expressions which have been employed here are used asterms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention inthe use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents ofthe features shown and described, or portions thereof, but it isrecognized that various modifications are possible within the scope ofthe invention claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination of a shot shell comprising a case closed at one end,a wad therein spaced from the closed end, shot between said wad and theother end of said shell, said shell having a lateral port between theclosed end and said wad, and an air gun having a chamber into which saidshell fits having a port opening laterally into said chamber and inregister with the port in said shell when the shell is in position inthe chamber, and eccentrically disposed means on said shell, and meanson said gun for engaging said eccentrically disposed means to positionsaid shell so that said ports are in register when the shell is inposition in the chamber and a breech block to engage said shell and holdit in said chamber.

2. The combination of a shot shell comprising a case closed at one end,a wad therein spaced from the closed end, shot between said wad and theother end of said shell, said shell having a lateral port between theclosed end and said wad, and an air gun having a chamber into which saidshell fits having a port opening laterally into said chamber and inregister with the port in said shell when the shell is in position inthe chamber, and a breech block to engage said shell and hold it in saidchamber.

the air pressure operating on the valve 23 against the spring 4| forcesthe valve 23 to closed posi- 3. The combination of a shot shellcomprising a case closed at one end and having a flange at said endextending from said shell, having a portion extending laterally from theshell a greater distance than the rest of the flange, a wad in the shellspaced from the closed end, shot between said wad and the other end ofsaid shell, said shell having a lateral port between the closed endthereof and said wad, and an air gun having a chamber into which saidshell fits having a port opening laterally into said chamber and inregister with the port in said shell when the shell is in position inthe chamber, and having a passage leading to said chamber having an openside and being of a width to receive the narrowest por tion of theflange on the shell whereby said shell can only be inserted in saidchamber in a predetermined position, and a breech block to engage saidflange when the shell is in the chamber.

4. The combination of a shot shell comprising a case closed at one endand having a flange at said end extending from said shell, having aportion extending laterally from the shell a greater distance than therest of the flange, a wad in the shell spaced from the closed end, shotbetween said wad and the other end of said shell said shell having alateral port between the closed end thereof and said wad, and an air gunhaving a chamber into which said shell fits having a port openinglaterally into said chamber and in register with the port in said shellwhen the shell is in position in the chamber, and having a recess at theentrance to said chamber shaped to fit said flange, whereby said shellcan only be inserted in said chamber in a predetermined position, and abreech block to engage said flange when the shell is in the chamber.

5. The combination of a shell comprising a case closed at one end andhaving an open space adjacent said closed end, said case having alateral port opening into said open space, and an air gun having achamber into which said shell fits having a port opening laterally intosaid chamber and in register with the port in said case when the shellis in position in the chamber, and eccentrically disposed means on saidgun for engaging said eccentrically disposed means to position saidshell so that said ports are in register when the shell is in positionin the chamber, and a breech block to engage said shell and hold it insaid chamber.

6. The combination of a shell comprising a case closed at one end andhaving an open space adjacent said closed end, said case having alateral port opening into said open space, and an air gun having achamber into which said shell fits having a port opening laterally intosaid chamber and in register with the port in said case when the shellis in position in the chamber, and a breech block to engage said shelland hold it in said chamber.

'7.' In an air gun, the combination of an air reservoir adapted whenfully charged with air under pressure to hold sufiicient air for-severalshots, a port leading therefrom, a poppet valve in said reservoir andclosing said port and adapted to be closed and held in closed positionprimarily by air in said reservoir and having a stem, substantially theentire resistance to the opening of said valve being the pressure of airin said reservoir, a hammer extending along the line of the axis of saidvalve stem and movable from a cocked position spaced from said stem to adischarging position in contact with the end of the stem to open thevalve, a spring adapted to propel said hammer from cocked position todischarged position said spring being adapted to be compressed by manualcooking of said gun and not adapted to hold the valve open againstfiring pressure in said reservoir, said hammer being adapted whenpropelled by said spring from cooked to discharging position to strikesaid stem and open said valve against firing air pressure in saidreservoir when fully charged, whereby on firing of the gun when thereservoir is fully charged, the valve is opened momentarily and is thenclosed by the pressure of the air in the reservoir working on said valveand against said spring, thereby conserving a portion of the air in thereservoir, and means for supporting said hammer and spring as a unit andadjustable as a unit toward or away from said valve, and stop meansmounted on said supporting means for accurately limiting firing movementof said hammer and the opening of thevalve.

8. In an air gun, the combination of an air reservoir adapted when fullycharged with air under pressure to hold sufilcient air for severalshots, a port leading therefrom, a poppet valve in said reservoir andclosing said port'and having a stem, substantially the entire resistanceto the opening of said valve being the pressure of air in saidreservoir, a hammer extending along the line of the axis of said valvestem and movable from a cocked position spaced from said stem to adischarging position in contact with the end of the stem toopen thevalve, a spring adapted to propel said hammer from cocked position todischarged position, said hammer being adapted when propelled by saidspring from cocked to discharging position to strike said stem and opensaid valve, and means for supporting said hammer and spring as a unitand adjustable as a unit toward or away from said valve, and stop meansmounted on said supporting means for accurately limiting firing movementof said hammer and the opening of the valve.

9. In an air gun having a high pressure air reservoir, a port leadingtherefrom, and a poppet valve in said port having a stem extending outthrough said port, the combination of a support movable toward or awayfrom said valve stem on a line parallel therewith, means for holdingsaid support in adjusted position, a hammer mounted on and for movementalong said support and axially of said valve stem and positioned tostrike said valve stem to open the valve, a hammer spring on saidsupport engaging said hammer to drive it toward said valve stem, and

a stop on said support in the line of movement of said hammer to limitthe forward firing movement of said hammer when it is propelled by saidspring, whereby uniform hammer travel is obtained at all times andwhereby the amount of opening of the valve may be determined byadjusting said support toward or away from said valve stem.

10. In an air gun having a high pressure air reservoir, 8. port leadingtherefrom, and a poppet valve in said port having a stem extending outthrough said port, the combination of a support movable toward or awayfrom said valve stem on a line parallel therewith, means for holdingsaid support in adjusted- -position, a hammer mounted on and formovement along said support and axially of said valve stem andpositioned to :strike said valve stem to open the valve, and a hammerspring on said support engaging said hammer to drive it toward saidvalve stem.

PERRY FRANKLIN V'INCEN T.

